Portable viewer for micro-film



Oct. 25,V 1966 J. KLEIN 3,280,491

PORTABLE VIEWER FOR MICRO-FILM Filed April 20, 1964 `3.Sheets-Sha@1; 2

C25 3133 23 3o 343336 D imm 27 25u INVENTOR.

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Oct. 25,- 1966 J. KLEIN 3,280,491

PORTABLE VIEWER FOR MICRO-FILM Filed April 20, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR.

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United States Patent() 3,280,491 PRTABLE VIEWER FOR MICRO-FILM Jeshayahu Klein, 5374 .eanne-Mance, Montreal, Quebec, Canada Filed Apr. 20, 1964, Ser. No. 366,833 Claims. (Cl. 40-93) This invention relates generally to film viewing devices and more particularly to la portable micro-film viewing device suitable for use by students and thelike.

The use of micro-film, particularly in the instructional and educational field has become increasingly more adopted, the obvious advantages of such film as opposed to the larger forms needing no detailing.

Currently used projectors, episcopes and the like, while fulfilling their intended object of providing a clear reproduction of microfilm transparencies and, in the main too bulky to be readily portable, expensive to manufacture and, as a result, not suitable for the use I have in rnind, namely use by classes of students.

Much useful information and instructive material is capable of being reproduced on micro-film such as for instance printed matter, sections of books, charts, graphs, maps and t-he like. Suoh information, `which would normally occupy a considerable amountof space and require numerous books, primers and the like to convey its message to a student, is reduced to an inexpensive minimum when transferred to micro-film.

Similarly, it is often the case that students are required Vto familiarize themselves with certain sections of books,

such sections having become recognized as standard text book material referred to by succeeding classes. The provision of such books is generally an expensive concern, the student often having to obtain his own copy either by borrowing from a known source, such as a library, or by outright purchase, the accumulated books requiring to be -referred to often presenting an acute financial problem.

Having in mind, therefore, the increasing use of microfilm in education, industry and commerce and wishing to extend its useful application, particularly with regard to the student body, it is a primary object of my invention to provide a portable viewer for micro-film, referred to hereinafter by the shortened term micro-film viewer which is so constructed as to be particularly suited to classroom instru-ction.

Another important object of this invention is to provide a micro-film viewer which is independent of any internal light source, such as is commonly found in the majority of episcopes.

Still another obiect of the instant invention provides a micro-film viewer which may be manually or .automotively operated.

A further object of my invention yresides, in the provision of a micro-film viewer having reversing means incorporated therewith, thereby enabling film to be run in either direction.

Yet la further object of the instant invention seeks to provide a micro-film viewer of the character herein described which, while embodying the aforementioned advantages and conveniences is yet relatively inexpensive to manufacture.

The above and various other pertinent objects and features of the instant invention will become more readily ,apparent from the following detailed descriptions of parts and assemblies, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like characters of reference designate like parts in the several views and wherein:

FiG. 1 is a part exploded, representational perspective view of my invention showing some of the main component parts and their relationship to each other ICC FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, detail view of a spool and gear wheel embodied in the invention.

FIG. 3 is a front elevational View of part of the assembly illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG, 4 is a detail perspective view of a spring mechanism used with the invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view, taken on the underside, of the casing in which the spring mechanism illustrated in FIG. 4 is housed.

FIG. 6 is a resilient guide channel embodied in the invention.

FIG. 7 is a fragmented perspective view of va portion of the housing in which my invention is housed.

FIG. 8 is a part cut-away perspective View of the invention when assembled and enclosed in its housing.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 3 and 8 a micro-film viewer generally designated by the arrow 1li includes a rectangular housing 11, housing 11 comprising a suitable plastic material or the like and having two parallel, spaced apart side walls 12 and 13, a rear wall 14, a front wall 15, a bottom wall 16 andan upper wall 17.

A lens 18 Iis located substantially centrally within rear wall 14 and coplanar therewith. Front wall 15 has a rectangle of translucent material 19 such as for instance, frosted glass located substantially centrally therewithin and coplanar therewith, glass 19 and lens 1S being in axial alignment.

Two film spools, here designated A spool and B spo-ol respectively, are freely and concentrically rotatable upon a common support shaft 2l), support shaft 20 having conventional angling sections Ztla at its terminal ends. Spool A and spool B are mounted upon shaft 2t) in such armanner as to achieve a spaced apart axially aligned relationship with each other.

Referring now particularly to FIGS. 2 and 3, spools A and B each have a liner or facing 2i of felt or the like imposed upon their innermost faces. Liners Z1 may either be affixed to the said faces of spools A and B by suitable adhesive means or may, if required, be located thereagainst as a separate `disc of material axially supported by shaft 20.

Two gear wheels here designated C gear and D gear, are also mounted on shaft 20 in axial and spaced apart alignment, gears C and D respectively being in close adjacency with spools A andB, and mounted inwardly Vthereof, liners 21 being located inbetween each spool and its adjacent gear wheel.

It will be observed that spools A and B and gear wheels C and D are mounted on reduced sections 2Gb of shaft 20 and that each reduced section axially supports a dished ring or cup 22, cups 22 acting as base stops for light coil springs 23, springs 23 being mounted about reduced sections 205 and biasing gear wheels C and D respectively against their adiacent spools A and B thereby producing a slipping clutch assembly.

Support shaft 20 is supported within housing 11, parallel with bottom wall 16 and transversely of the housing by means of two vertically upwardly projecting support legs 24 (shown in phantom in FIG. l), legs 24 being secured at their bases to bottom wall 16, or, if required, moulded .integrally therewith.

Referring to FiGS. 1, 3 and 4, a support shaft 25, also supported by legs 24 in much the same manner as shaft 2i), has rigidly Iand concentrically affixed to each of its terminal ends a gear wheel 26 and 27 respectively.

As support shaft 25 is disposed in parallel spaced apart relationship with support shaft 20 and as gear wheels 26, 27 are permanently engaged with gear wheels C and D along their toothed engaging edges, any movement will be transmitted one to the other. An extending section 25a 0f shaft 25 has fixed to its terminal end a twist knob 2'8,

3 the purpose of which will be detailed later on in the specification.

Two bevel gears 29 and 3l) are located in parallel spaced apart relationship on shaft 25, equi-distant from the centre thereof, the bevelled faces of the gears being disposed toward each other.

Having particular reference to FIG. 3 it will be seen that gears 29 and 30 have a limited lateral freedom on shaft 25, gears 29 and 30 being slidably operable on splines 31 and 32 formed on reduced sections 33 and 34 respectively of shaft 25. Two cups 3S and 36 are mounted upon reduced sections 33 and 34 respectively and act as stop members for light helical springs 37 and 38, springs 37 and 38 biasing gears 29 and 30 toward the centre of shaft 25.

A conventional liat spiral spring 39 has an outer terminal end 39a and an inner terminal end 39h, end 39a being secured to a spring casing described later on in this specification, and end 39b being afiixed to a central key shaft 40 which passes axially vthrough spring 39. Shaft 40 terminates at its lower end in a twist key section 41 and has a reduced section 42 at its upper terminal end, section 42 having a spline 43 formed longitudinally thereon.

A bevel gear 44, slidably operable on spline 43 is biased upwardly on reduced section 42 by a light helical spring 64 whose lower end is supported by a cup 45 mounted on reduced section 42. Bevel gear 44, which has its bevelled face disposed upwardly is prevented from disengagement with reduced section 42 by virtue of the centre section of shaft 25, the upper end of bevel gear 44 bearing thereagainst in :final assembly.

Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 7 wherein is depicted a circular casing 46 for the housing of spring 39. `Casing 46 has formed therethrough a central orifice 47, permit-ting passage of key shaft `4t). Two elongated angular projections 48 formed integrally with the base wall of casing 46 are adapted 4to be received within two cooperable angular projections 49 formed integrally with the interior face of bottom wall 16 and being disposed transversely of housing 11.

Referring now to FIGS. 5, 6, and 7, a resilient guide channel 50 includes an elongate strip of expansible material formed in substantially a loop form having parallel spaced apart side walls 51, two terminal sections 52 and 53 respectively of substantially circular configuration, and a centrally located section 54, also of circular configuration. End sections 55, extending longitudinally outwardly of terminal sections 52 and 53 are adapted to be affixed by rivetting means or the like to a speci-c location on bottom wall 16 of housing 11.

Referring particularly to FIG. 7 it will be seen that an elongate slot 56 is formed equi-distant between angular projections 49 and parallel therewith, slot, 56 being formed through bottom wall 16 of housing 11 and being wide as the diameter of key shaft 40 throughout its length.

In assembly, channel 50 is located immediately above slot 56, aligned therewith and rivetted to bottom wall 16 through plates 55. Spring 39, within casing 46 is located immediately beneath shaft 25 and angular projections 48 of casing 46 are slotted into their corresponding members 49 thereby effecting asliding transverse tit of casing 46 within housing 11. Key shaft 40 is adapted to pass through guide channel 50 and to be received by central section 54 thereof in a snug fit, the twist key section 41 of key shaft 40 projecting downwardly of bottom wall 16 of housing 11.

In this central location, bevel gear 44 is equi-distant between bevel gears 29 and 30 and no engagement therebetween is effected. However, upon biasing key shaft 40 in the direction of arrow head R in FIGS. 3 and 6, shaft 40 will leave central section 54 of channel Sti, eX-

panding parallel walls 51 -as it passes therebetween and v subsequently locate within terminal section 52 wherein it will be securely retained by the resiliency of parallel walls 51. Similarly, key shaft 40 may be moved to the opposite terminal end 53 of guide channel 50, i.e. in the direction of arrow head L, the sequence of action being identical to the rst mentioned.

Referring to all iigures, in operation a spool `of microfilm, say for instance spool A is loaded into housing via conventional entry panels 11a as depicted in FIG 8, micro-dilm stip 57 being drawn olf the top of spool A, fed around pulleys 58, which are conventionally supported by legs 59 shown in phantom in FIG. 1, legs 59 having been formed integrally with bottom wall 16 of housing 11 or attached thereto by conventional means, whereafter film strip 57 is taken up by empty spool B, strip 57 being attached to the lower side of spool B.

Having particular reference to FIG. 1 it will be seen that, as indicated by arrows X, a viewers eye looking through lens 1:8 in the direction of arrows X passes through lens 18, film strip 57 and ont-o frosted glass 19, which if held toward a light source such as a window or an electric light will have reprduced thereon an enlarged version of the particular frame through which the observer is looking via lens 18. It will be readily apparent that the lirst few inches of film will not bear any information thereon, being used solely to establish the runon of strip 57.

Manual operation Having loaded micro-film viewer 1t) as heretofore described, a simple, frame-by-frame progression of tilm strip S7 is effected by operating twist knob 28 in the pertinent direction, twist knob 28 driving gear wheels 26, and 27 via drive support shaft 25. The complete strip 57 may in this way be wound off the loaded spool and onto the empty spool, reverse rotation of twist knob 28 allowing a viewer to refer back to any particular frame he may wish to go over again. However, it is not anticipated that manual operation of micro-film viewer 10 will be used to re-wind or refer to back frames, the use of keyed spring 39 being a muchvsirnpler and more speedy matter.

Automatic operation Upon a viewer wishing to re-wind a spool, flat spring 39 is first wound to its limit, while in the central location, that is, with bevel gear 44 equi-distant between bevel gears 29 and 30 and central of shaft 25. It will readily be understood that spring 39 is of the conventional, clockwork toy variety and should be capable of winding up and retaining its wound tension until required to operate, any of the conventional methods known to the art being used to achieve this. Furthermore, it is anticipated that suitable reduction gearing will be incorporated with spring 39, such devices not Ibeing depicted as their conventional nature makes no demands for detailing in this specification. Thus having completely or partially wound-on film strip 57 by manual operation of twist knob 28 and wishing to either completely re-wind the strip onto its first spool or refer to a particular back frame, casing 46 is biased in the direction of arrow head R, by means of twist key 41, thereby causing key shaft 40 to leave its central location in section 54 of guide channel 50, pass between resilient walls 51 and re-locate in terminal section 52. As bevel gear 44 is located on reduced section 42 of shaft 40 it too will move therewith, the bevelled face thereof meshing with the cooperable bevelled face of gear 29. Spring 39 is then released, gear 44 rotating and imparting a related rotary motion to gear 29. To ensure smooth engagement of bevel gear 44 with cooperable gears 29 and 30 gear 44 is slidably operable on spline 43 as heretofore described. Similarly, to ensure good meshing of the respective faces, gears 29 and 30 are held against gear 44 in its respective locations by means of their inwardly biasing springs 37 and 38.

As gear 29 is rotationally integral with shaft 25, the said shaft will rotate in a like direction thereby causing gear wheels 26 and 27 to rotate also. Gear wheels 26 and 27 will, due to their engagement with gear wheels C and D, cause rotation thereof, rotation of gear wheels C and D being in the opposite direction to that of gear wheels 26 and 27.

In the embodiment shown in these figures spring 39 is depicted as being tensioned by yanti-clockwise rotation thereof. Thus, release of spring 39 as described imparts clock-wise rotation to bevel gear 44 (as viewed from the normal holding position of viewer), and a corresponding clockwise rotation to gear 29 thereby driving gear C in corresponding anti-clockwise manner via gear wheel 26.

It will be apparent that complete reversal of direction of the gear wheels will be achieved by moving key shaft 40 to its location in section S3 of channel S0, the sequence of operation being identical to that heretofore described. Any variation in speed between spools A and B during wind-on or re-wind is compensated for by the slipping clutch provided.

It is anticipated that certain subjects covered in a sequence of frames will have an index at the beginning so that certain sections of the film may be quickly located by automatic operation of micro-iilm viewer 10, any final frame alignment being justified by use of manually operable twist knob 28.

By the foregoing, I claim to have provided a relatively inexpensive and uncomplicated micro-film viewer suitable for use by students and the like and requiring no internal light source for use thereof.

The general design of the individual parts of the invention as explained above Imay be varied according to manufacturers requirements and production thereof, while still remaining within the spirit and principle of the invention without prejudicing the novelty thereof.

The embodments of this invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A micro-film viewer including a substantially rectangular housing; a spool support shaft, said shaft being disposed transversely within said housing and substantially adjacent the rear Wall thereof; a first spool and a second spool, said spools being freely and concentrically mounted upon said shaft in parallel spaced apart relationship; a first and a second gear wheel, said gear wheels being freely and concentrically mounted on said shaft in spaced apart relationship and internally of said spools; pulley means for the guiding of a length of micro-film from said first to said second spool, said pulley means being located in parallel spaced apart relationship within said housing, said iilm being disposed horizontally therebetween so that its frames are vertically inclined; lens means located in the rear wall of said housing; a translucent rectangle of material, said rectangle being located centrally within the front wall of said housing; said lens and said translucent rectangle being in axial alignment yand said horizontally disposed portion of said film passing therebetween in such a relationship thereto as to locate the centre of each individual frame in axial alignment therewith; automatically operated drive means for said spools, said drive means including ra convolute spring and twist key therefor; slipping clutch means relevant to each of said spools; selective reversal means for said drive means; and means for the manual operation of said microfilm viewer.

2. A micro-film viewer as defined in claim 1 in which said automatically operable drive means for said spools includes a first driven gear wheel and a second driven gear Wheel, said first gear wheel being freely and concentrically mounted upon said shaft in immediate juxtaposition with the inner face of said first spool and said second gear wheel being simil-arly disposed in immediate juxtaposition with the inner face of said second spool; a first driving gear wheel and a second driving gear wheel; a gear Wheel support shaft, said shaft being disposed in parallel spaced apart relationship with said spool support shaft; said rst and said second driving gear wheel being concentrically and rigidly mounted on each end of said gear Wheel support shaft, said first driving gear wheel being in constant er1- gagement with said first driven gear wheel and said second driving gear ywheel being in constant engagement with said second driven gear wheel; a casing for said spring and a twist key therefor; said spring having its outer terminal end secured within said housing and having its inner terminal end affixed to the shaft of said twist key, said shaft passing axially through said spring and said casing; said key shaft having a first bevel gear affixed to its upper end, said bevel gear being concentric therewith, said key shaft having a twist key section formed thereon at its lower terminal end; said spring and said casing being slidably retained within said housing and being capable of transverse movement therein; two bevel gears, said gears being mounted concentrically upon said gear Wheel support shaft and in spaced apart relationship thereon, said first bevel gear being capable of individual operational engagement with either of said two bevel gears :depending upon the location of said spring and said casing within said housing; and said first and said second driven gear wheels being in frictional engagement with said first and said second spools.

3. A micro-film viewer as defined in claim 1 in which said slipping clutch means include two helical springs, each of said helical springs being mounted longitudinally on a reduced end section of said spool support shaft and inwardly of said first and second gear Wheels; two cup members, each of said cup members being mounted on one of said reduced sections of said shaft and supporting the base of one of said helical springs; two felt liners, each liner being located between a pertinent gear wheel and its adjacent spool; and said helical springs biasing said gear wheels outwardly in such a manner `as to frictionally engage each gear wheel with its pertinent spool.

4. A micro-film viewer as defined in claim 1 in which said selective reversal means for said drive means include a guide channel, said guide channel comprising a substantially loop form of expansible material, said loop form having spaced apart parallel walls, substantially circular end sections and a substantially circular centre section; end portions, said end portions projecting longitudinally outwardly of said end sections; an elongate slot,

Y said elongate slot being formed within the lbottom wall of said housing and transversely thereof, a key shaft passing transversely through said channel and said slot and being received within a pertinent one of said circular sections; the width of said slot being slightly greater than the diameter of the said key shaft; :said guide channel being afiixed immediately above and in alignment with said elongate slot; and the location of said key shaft within said channel determining the direction of said drive means during operation thereof.

5. A micro-film viewer as defined in claim 1 in which said means for the manual operation thereof include a twist knob, said twist knob being located externally of said housing and being in direct communication with said automatically operated drive means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 688,175 12/1901 Houke 40-89 1,428,480 9/1922 Giroux 352-156 X 2,502,178 3/1950 Skupien 40-86 X 2,539,676 1/1951 Sontag et al. 40-93 EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner. W. GRIEB, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A MICRO-FILM VIEWER INCLUDING A SUBSTANTIALLY RECTANGULAR HOUSING; A SPOOL SUPPORT SHAFT, SAID SHAFT BEING DISPOSED TRANSVERSELY WITHIN SAID HOUSING AND SUBSTANTIALLY ADJACENT THE REAR WALL THEREOF; A FIRST SPOOL AND A SECOND SPOOL, SAID SPOOLS BEING FREELY AND CONCENTRICALLY MOUNTED UPON SAID SHAFT IN PARALLEL SPACED APART RELATIONSHIP; A FIRST AND A SECOND GEAR WHEEL, SAID GEAR WHEELS BEING FREELY AND CONCENTRICALLY MOUNTED ON SAID SHAFT IN SPACED APART RELATIONSHIP AND INTERNALLY OF SAID SPOOLS; PULLEY MEANS FOR THE GUIDING OF A LENGTH OF MICRO-FILM FROM SAID FIRST TO SAID SECOND SPOOL, SAID PULLEY MEANS BEING LOCATED IN PARALLEL SPACED APART RELATIONSHIP WITHIN SAID HOUSING, SAID FILM BEING DISPOSED HORIZONTALLY THEREBETWEEN SO THAT ITS FRAMES ARE VERTICALLY INCLINED; LENS MEANS LOCATED IN THE REAR WALL OF SAID HOUSING; A TRANSLUCENT RECTANGLE OF MATERIAL, SAID RECTANGLE BEING LOCATED CENTRALLY WITHIN THE FRONT WALL OF SAID HOUSING; SAID LENS AND SAID TRANSLUCENT RECTANGLE BEING IN AXIAL ALIGNMENT AND SAID HORIZONTALLY DISPOSED PORTION OF SAID FILM PASSING THEREBETWEEN IN SUCH A RELATIONSHIP THERETO AS TO LOCATE THE CENTRE OF EACH INDIVIDUAL FRAME IN AXIAL ALIGNMENT THEREWITH; AUTOMATICALLY OPERATED DRIVE MEANS FOR SAID SPOOLS, SAID DRIVE MEANS INCLUDING A CONVOLUTE SPRING AND TWIST KEY THEREFOR; SLIPPING CLUTCH MEANS RELEVANT TO EACH OF SAID SPOOLS; SELECTIVE REVERSAL MEANS FOR SAID DRIVE MEANS; AND MEANS FOR THE MANUAL OPERATION OF SAID MICROFILM VIEWER. 